Dive into the Mediterranean Diet!

Lavon/ July 12, 2021/ Wellness/ 1 comments

The best diet for you is also great for the environment!

The research has been solid for 50+ years. The Mediterranean diet benefits your body and your brain (as if those were separate). It’s environment-friendly, too. So, let’s get into it! 

We all want to feel well, strong, and energetic for as long as possible. So, why don’t we make the changes that wellness experts recommend? Speaking for myself, I eat food I like, do what I want, and live my best today… Except when I’m eating for the energy I don’t have, rushing projects I scarcely have time for, and white-knuckling through being kind. When I’ve modified more goals than I’ve accomplished, I’m due for a revamp.

During my Christmas quarantine of 2020, I committed to a lifestyle I’d previously only flirted with. The benefits are well-researched; doctors and health gurus have banged on about the Mediterranean diet/lifestyle’s benefits for decades. In fact, there’s so much information about the Mediterranean diet out there, it can be hard to get the skinny at a glance (scroll for it).

It’s no fad; it’s the way of eating and living that has long sustained several of the healthiest populations in the world, with Spain predicted to overtake even Japan in life expectancy. The Mediterranean lifestyle doesn’t just lead to longevity, it leads to a higher quality of life.

Research on the Mediterranean lifestyle shows that it can stave off depression and its twin, anxiety. It protects against diabetes and helps diabetics steady blood sugar levels and maintain a healthy weight. A two-year study showed that the Mediterranean diet led to weight-loss within a half pound of a low-carb diet and was much more effective for weight loss than a low-fat diet. 

Followers of the Med lifestyle have better health, muscle strength, and agility in their elder years than other Westerners. When adopted early, the diet decreases changes seen in the brain due to Alzheimer’s disease, and it slashes the risk of Parkinson’s disease, likely because it’s an overall anti-inflammatory diet. Published in 2011, the Three City study showed a 41% lower risk of stroke for participants who consumed a lot of olive oil compared to those who didn’t use it. Just eating the Mediterranean way reduces the risk of chronic conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and many cancers.

Generally, a healthy diet reduces inflammation, the body’s over-response to fighting illness and injury. Foods limited in the Mediterranean diet like red meat and refined carbs, including sugar, promote inflammation. Mediterranean diet stars like olive oil, vegetables, legumes, seeds, poultry, fermented dairy, fatty fish and dark chocolate contain plenty of anti-inflammatory nutrients like magnesium and may balance out our immune system’s gung-ho overreaction. During Spain’s first severe COVID-19 outbreak, participants already enrolled in the SUN study – designed to track the health of adherents to the Mediterranean diet- showed that people who followed the diet most faithfully were significantly less likely to be infected with COVID. The bounty of benefits convinced me to try it, even though I thought it would be no picnic.

Going Mediterranean in the Deep South 

My diet was already out of the norm for where I’m from, and I braced for a new round of trolling. I can’t eat gluten, so most of my grains are brown or wild rice, quinoa, and, my favorite, oats. I also do intermittent fasting, 16/8. If you’ve never lived in the small-town South, let me share that gluten-intolerance deniers scoff at me on the daily. When I turn down late-night dessert, my sister country-curses (“Lord Bless America,” if you were wondering). My vegetable-loaded plate gets eye-rolls from near-strangers. To them all, I say, “Bless your pea-pickin’ heart for looking out for me! But I got this, Honey. How you doin’?” I plunged into the change, steeling my willpower.

When you’re ready to rehab your habits, knowing your why can help you commit. I got serious about the Mediterranean diet and lifestyle over the 2020 Christmas holiday, spent in quarantine. I wasn’t sick, but I’d lost my vigor to a deep slump. Quarantine gave me a shot at changing my eating habits without bacon-wrapped maple green beans and cream-cheese jalapeno corn tempting me at every event. I also had more time to get consistent about balanced exercise, and the Mediterranean diet had some surprise benefits in store for me! It was so easy!

A bump or two on my path

The “chef” in my house prepares mouth-watering meat at every meal, and, though I’ve never been much of a carnivore, I used to eat some of everything served. Since switching to the Med Diet meant meat once or twice a month, I began to cook extra main dishes and, most times, skipped the meat everyone else ate. At first, my cooking was barely edible. But, I’m honing some mad chopping skills. As I learn to cook, I sauté or roast an array of vegetables, drizzled with delicious olive oil, and my family digs in with me.

Eating in this new way made me more mindful of what I reached for out of habit. As I logged my meals, I realized that my diet was heavier in legumes and dairy than recommended, so I replaced some servings of hummus, soy, and cheese with vegetables and grains. For variety, we fry up vegetable pancakes (in olive oil) and ladle pasta sauces over roasted spaghetti squash. Meals on-the-go for long hikes, bikes, or work days start with homemade granola with seeds or nuts and fresh fruits and vegetables (apples, avocado, carrots, celery, cauliflower, broccoli). All of this is accomplished without relying on processed, packaged food (yay planet!).

Let’s chew the fat about olive oil

The hardest change for me was adding tablespoons a day of olive oil. I came of age in the FAT IS BAD era, but the research on the health-boosting effects of EVOO is strong. It’s anti-inflammatory, helps the brain, lowers bad (LDL) cholesterol, and reduces the risk of breast cancer (62% in post-menopausal women!).  I got over my fat phobia. Olive oil adds incredible flavor. Still, I expected to gain a pound or two, and I was determined to be ok with that.

So, what has it done for me? 

Instead of gaining weight, I lost 10 pounds in my first 4 months. I wasn’t heavy to begin with, but my muscles are more defined now, thanks. How? I ate the minimum of each of the recommended daily servings of food (ref the log), sprinkled in the weekly recommended foods, and added servings from the top of the list on down until I was satisfied. I leave meals full without feeling gross. Cravings? Yes. For small, chef-free meals, I now crave sauteed vegetables, Spanish sardines over brown rice, toasted pecans and berries on plain Greek yogurt, or oat porridge with apples and nut butter.

In fact, after eating mainly unprocessed foods, my sense of taste has become hyper-sensitive to sugar and salt. I’ve lost my fondness for meat. Sometimes, I go off and throw down on whatever (gluten-free) mess is within reach, and I’m put off by the almost sickly sweetness or burning saltiness of foods I used to binge. The Mediterranean diet is so easy to follow that on a recent overseas vacation, I had no problem sticking to it.

The difference in how I feel surprises me. My thinking is sharper, and my mood more positive and relaxed. My skin is positively dewy and my nails are stronger. I’m back to the obnoxious amount of energy I enjoyed in younger years (sorry, fam). The refreshed mindset more than compensates for the steak and bacon I’m skipping.

I exercise about every day, and in my workouts, I have more endurance, in recovery, less stiffness. At first, I thought the boost to my workout was a fluke. Then, I ran across a very small study at St. Louis University showing that the Med diet improves runners’ speed and endurance. Also, my muscles haven’t lost mass or strength despite the decrease in protein (from 110 g daily average to 85 g/day). How do I know how much protein and other macros I’m getting? Now that I’m used to what to eat, I track my meals on myfitnesspal. Macros on the Med diet are about 40% carbs, 40% fat, and 20% protein.

Don’t stop at the Mediterranean diet!

To go full Med, you may have to change more than your food. The Mediterranean lifestyle compounds the benefits of the diet. If food is fuel and medicine, movement is the driver and essence of health. The Mediterranean lifestyle incorporates walking throughout the day, and leisure time adds in dancing, gardening, sports, and play, but not so much sitting in front of a screen (like we are now).

This hustle isn’t done alone. Mediterranean cultures eat communally and often create meals as an art form to lavish upon loved ones. Share your joys and burdens with your loves over a luscious slow-food meal. You’ll feel supported, motivated, comforted, and secure. Nurturing social bonds both in the family and in the community, showing compassion through hospitality, and maximizing meaning in your work all lower stress and add juice to living.

Mediterranean cultures boast a laid-back, relationship-centered approach to life. Outdoor cafes, wide sidewalks, and parks abound, encouraging a stroll or a gathering in the fresh air. So, why not emulate that way of life? Your happiness quotient is sure to increase!

Save yourself and the environment

Going fully Mediterranean will get you out in nature and help you conserve it. As I rely on plant-based foods for most of my calories, I’m being frugal with the world’s resources. About 80 billion land animals are slaughtered for meat every year, and contributing to that level of consumption doesn’t sit well with me. Industrial production of meat hurts people, too. Viruses mutate in factory-farmed animals, and antibiotic resistance increases as crowded conditions necessitate antibiotic-enhanced feed to prevent outbreaks of disease and promote fast growth.  

With every serving of meat I skip, I’m reducing livestock’s burden on land and water. 60% of the world’s agricultural land is used for beef. It takes at least 1,800 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef. Forests are razed and wetlands drained to provide more land for raising livestock in developing countries. Factory farms emit more than 35% of all methane, and their waste run-off pollutes water. Plants produce oxygen, they absorb carbon dioxide, and their roots prevent erosion. They also provide food for insects and wildlife, increasing biodiversity. Think about that next time you have a salad, and pat yourself on the back!  

As I’ve filled my plate with vegetables and whole grains, I’ve discovered so many varieties that I love. Adding a wide range of plants to my meals is better for my gut health and rewards diverse agriculture. According to the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), twelve plants and five types of animals make up most of what we eat! I’m always trying to incorporate new fruits or vegetables. I buy unprocessed fruits and vegetables as much as possible, using mesh bags for loose produce, to reduce food packaging. Just a little effort in making changes like this is meaningful work, a reward in itself. 

Are you following the Mediterranean diet? What have been your ups and downs?

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